What If Jon Snow’s Life Is Linked To Melisandre’s on ‘Game of Thrones’?

Warning: This article contains spoilers from Season 6 of Game Of Thrones. If you’re not up to date then I suggest you turn back now, for the night is dark and full of spoilers.

I don’t usually like fan theories, but I must admit that I’ve found myself a little obsessed now, especially when talking about Game of Thrones. I’ve discussed theories before, from to , but this article will focus on a theory that came to me based on an online comment. This comment discussed the possibility of Jon Snow’s life being linked to Melisandre. I didn’t think twice about it at the time, but later I started to think about how this could actually be a possibility. I’ve grown quite fond of the character of Melisandre, but I must admit that I did fear for her survival after Davos discovered her part in Shireen’s death. Check out Davos confronting her in the promo for the season finale:

As much as I fear for her death, something bugs me — very little is still known about the character, and that leads me to believe that she’s safe for the moment. Melisandre is certainly charismatic but she is also very secretive. Using evidence that I’ve complied from the series, allow me to explain to you why it is an entirely possible theory that Jon Snow’s life is now linked to Melisandre and therefore why Game Of Thrones cannot kill her off.

Melisandre Resurrected Jon Snow

Image Credit: HBO

Lets start with the obvious point — Melisandre resurrected Jon Snow. It has long been a theme of literature — not to mention film and television — that the resurrected/immortal being is now linked to the person responsible for giving them life. Similar themes have been explored in American Horror Story: Coven and The Vampire Diaries. Since Melisandre resurrected Jon Snow, then perhaps his life force is now connected to hers — meaning that if she dies, so would he.

Jon Didn’t Die in the Battle of the Bastards

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Jon Snow headed in to battle in ” ” against Ramsay Bolton and despite the fact that the odds were in Ramsay’s favor, Jon left the victor. However, if we go back to the battle now, it’s pretty strange how many times Jon avoided death.

Seriously, think about it — when he was standing as the lone warrior with his sword at the ready in front of Ramsay’s army, he was saved by the arrival of his own people. Later, when on the battlefield, he was almost hit by one of Ramsay’s men yet he was rescued by one of his own. And perhaps the most mind-bending incident of all: Jon was smothered under several hundreds of people running on top of him. Apart from the fact that he would be struggling for air he would’ve most certainly picked up an injury or two, yet he emerged with barely a scratch and no broken bones. If Jon’s life is now linked to Melisandre’s then perhaps he cannot die of his own accord.

What Do We Actually Know About Melisandre?

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To not sound all cliche and use one of the show’s famous phrases, but we know practically nothing about Melisandre. She’s been a major part of the show since its second season and possesses some supernatural abilities and powers that cannot be explained. showed us that we really have no idea what she — or any Red Priestess for that matter — is capable of.

She often discusses the Lord of Light’s power and we’ve seen her do unexplainable things in the past: An example is when she quoted Ygritte’s famous catchphrase back to Jon Snow (how could she have known?). And then of course she resurrected Jon Snow earlier this season. And who could forget the shadow demon? There was nothing holy about the shadow demon.

The Necklace Reveal

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As I mentioned above, the first episode of the season concluded with . This ability allows her to appear as the young, attractive, red-headed woman that we know her to be — but in reality she is very old, most likely centuries old. She’s also very clever; in “The Battle of The Bastards,” Melisandre told Jon Snow that she has no power — yet, at this point, the viewer is aware of the power that she possesses in her necklace.

As I’ve said, very little is known about the character, but this reveal suggests that Melisandre may have more abilities than we know — she may preach about the Lord of Light, but this ability is very much her own. Melisandre cannot die before her true powers are revealed to the viewers. Moreover, the fact that we got this reveal in the episode prior to her reviving Jon Snow leads me to believe that the two incidents are connected in some way.

Melisandre Has Now Pledged Her Allegiance to Jon Snow

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Melisandre always praised Stannis and called him the one true king — she saw this in the flames. However, she lost faith once Stannis died in battle because the Lord of Light had not shown her this outcome. When her resurrection of Jon Snow was successful, Melisandre pledged her allegiance to Jon, calling him “the prince that was promised.”

Melisandre’s beliefs have since been restored, but if she truly believes in Jon Snow that much and is willing to align herself with him, then she must be seeing a lot more in the flames than we know.

Melisandre Appears Hell-bent on Keeping Jon Alive

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In “The Battle of the Bastards” when Jon asks Melisandre not to bring him back if he dies in battle, she merely responds by saying “I’ll have to try. I am not your servant.” As I mentioned above, in this scene she claims that she has no power, which we are led to believe is a lie, so it’s entirely possible that Melisandre is hiding things from not only Jon Snow, but from us.

While the battlefield scene does make it appear as if Jon can’t die, this scene from earlier in the same episode gives us the impression that Melisandre cannot let him die. Although she claims that she is serving the Lord of Light, we have to wonder if there is another reason that she needs Jon alive. Perhaps she has an ulterior motive that we are unaware of yet.

Killing Off Melisandre Would be Too Predictable

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Melisandre has become a target ever since Davos discovered what she did to Shireen. The Red Priestess may have been acting out of the best intentions but that doesn’t excuse the heinous crime she committed on the poor girl.

Now that Davos is aware of her actions, this has automatically put her in the online listicles focusing on characters that will die in the finale. To put it bluntly: Melisandre’s death would be too predictable and predictability is not a word often associated with Game Of Thrones. Having said that, I cannot see Davos letting Melisandre away with this, so if this theory comes to pass then it would be the perfect way to save her skin and keep her on the show a little longer.

For the night is dark and full of terror.

It may be nothing more than a crazy theory from an obsessed fan, but stranger things have happened in the world of Westeros. Melisandre continues to reveal layer after layer about her character that, if anything, put us even more in the dark about her. She may be beloved for reviving Jon Snow, but there’s no doubt that her mysteriousness is terrifying. If she’s linked to Jon Snow, then she’ll be on the show for a long time to come.

Except Jon Snow.

Does this theory fill you full of terror? Tell me in the comment section below!